New Year, Improved Me

I'm seeing a lot of "New Year, New You" and "New Year, New Me" posts lately. I get it with the new year and all. In a way, this is one of them but I'm not looking to be "new". Just "improved". I don't like to make resolutions that I will not reach (waaaayyy too much pressure), but I do like to make goals that are attainable and can improve my life in various ways. So here are some goals that I look forward to working on this year!

1. Read more. I love to read, but I feel like I pushed it more to the side last year.
2. Try more new recipes. I've already gotten a pretty good start on this and have been sharing a few of the ones I've tried on my Snapchat (@wendybanner).
3. More date nights. I'm happy with nights in, but sometimes we get into a rut. And we always love a good date night! It feels fresh!

4. Skincare and pamper days. It may not come across on my social media, but I'm actually really bad at taking some time to wind down and pamper myself or remembering to take as good care of my skin as I should. Time for more of that! (Skincare featured is by Cocoon Apothecary and the review is coming next week!)
5. Be present. Often times my phone is my shield, my BFF, my lifeline. Last year, I got better at putting it down and just being "there". But I want to build on that.
6. Buy less fluff and more of what I truly enjoy. My spending habits have gone way down in recent years and I'm really learning to be more particular about what deserves my money. I want to continue this path and not just buy to be buying.

7. Be more active. My knee injury forces me to be active, because it has to MOVE. I still rely on a cane sometimes, but I'm walking a little more without it on each outing. I know I can do better. I want this to be the year that I get my knee as straight as I can, bend it as much as it will allow, and build my stamina back up to be able to walk without getting tired and winded. "He who limps is still walking" is my mantra this year.
8. Talk to you guys more. I do my best to respond to every comment, email, you name it. I'm not a "big blogger" by any means and I don't mean it to sound like that. I just know that I really like it when a blogger takes the time to respond to most of my questions and comments. Every blogger and person on social media should take the time to communicate or why bother being on here?
9. Think more positively. I'm one of the first to say "I can't..." or "I don't think I..." I want to start taking away some of those negative thoughts and replacing them with positive ones. 
10. Keep this blog going and growing. Last year was one of my most successful years and I want to keep that going. This year is off to a promising start! I keep hearing about how video is this year's thing, but I'm not entirely comfortable with that. While I have a YouTube account that I use daily, I very rarely upload to it. Editing requires a lot of time and effort on top of the time and effort this blog and social media already takes. I find the most successful YouTubers do not seem to be bloggers, so it is great that they have a main focus and that one channel to market. For me, my blog is my focus and passion. I'm also not very comfortable in front of a camera. I understand video being huge, but I'm not sure it is in my future at least not in an everyday way. I might fiddle around and see if I can figure a way to make it work for me. You'll be the first to know, if so!

What are some of your goals for this year? I'd love to hear them!